MEMPHIS vs NEW ORLEANS 12/7/2018 Odds, Picks & Preview

The MEMPHIS and the NEW ORLEANS will both be gunning for a victory on 12/7/2018 at 8:05 PM when they meet in a game matchup.

MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES vs NEW ORLEANS PELICANS
When: 8:00 PM  ET, Friday, December 7, 2018
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana

TV: 8:05 PM
LINE: -4.5
PREDICTION: NEW ORLEANS , MEMPHIS

Oddsmakers currently have the NEW ORLEANS listed as -4.5 point favorites versus the MEMPHIS, while the game’s total is sitting at 217.

Opposing styles are set to clash when the high-scoring New Orleans Pelicans host the defensive-minded Memphis Grizzlies on Friday. The Pelicans enter play on Thursday second in the NBA in scoring offense at an average of 118.7 points while the Grizzlies are second in scoring defense at 102.3 points allowed.

New Orleans showed off its firepower on Wednesday in a 132-106 victory over the Dallas Mavericks, shooting 55.4 percent from the floor while knocking down 17-of-29 from beyond the arc and placing six scorers in double figures. “I think we started the game with a lot of energy,” Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry told reporters. “We moved the ball and we got out and ran. We did everything we had to do to try and replicate everything we did early in the season.” Memphis found its way into the win column on Wednesday by holding the Los Angeles Clippers to 33.8 percent shooting in a 96-86 triumph. “The whole thing we were worried about was just grinding it out,” Grizzlies forward JaMychal Green told reporters. “We knew it was going to be a hard-fought game, and we knew they were going to come to play. Everybody stepped up tonight, we got the game won, playing defense and moving the ball as a team.”

TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS South (Memphis), FS New Orleans

ABOUT THE GRIZZLIES (14-9): Veteran center Joakim Noah made his team debut on Wednesday and collected four points and three rebounds in 13 minutes off the bench while providing the team with an energy jolt. “He’s added energy from the moment he walked into this building,” Memphis rookie forward Jaren Jackson Jr. told reporters of Noah. “You can just feel it. He’s always hyped about whatever it is. Screaming, yelling – you saw it. All that. He’s doing everything. We love that.” Noah was playing in his first game since Jan. 2, when he went scoreless in two minutes for the New York Knicks.

ABOUT THE PELICANS (13-13): New Orleans continues to be led by MVP candidate Anthony Davis but is getting solid production from fellow forward Julius Randle, no matter what his role happens to be. Randle found himself in the starting lineup with Nikola Mirotic (illness) sidelined on Wednesday and contributed 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting and 18 rebounds. “My mindset doesn’t really change (starting),” Randle told reporters. “I just focus on what I can control, which is energy and effort. Any time you can share the floor with a guy like (Davis) it makes the game easier. It’s a different dynamic that teams have to adjust to.”

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Davis blocked five shots on Wednesday and is second in the NBA at an average of 2.82.

2. Memphis C Marc Gasol was held to four points on 1-of-13 shooting Wednesday.

3. The teams split four games last season, with each protecting homecourt.

PREDICTION: Pelicans 110, Grizzlies 96

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